


Interrupted Sleep

by allixiler



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-02
Updated: 2021-03-02
Packaged: 2021-03-15 02:01:01
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,296
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29801238
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/allixiler/pseuds/allixiler
Summary: Remus has bad dreams from time to time...but nothing like this.
Relationships: Remus Lupin & You, Remus Lupin/Original Female Character(s), Remus Lupin/You
Kudos: 9





	Interrupted Sleep

There was a faint light coming from outside, spilling into your bedroom through the cracked window. A gentle breeze flowed through the room, leaving your skin cool and your body comfortable. Your eyelids fluttered every few minutes or so as you continued to float through a deep, resting sleep. The clean sheets were draped over your waist and legs, keeping the easy wind from keeping you too cool. The inky black skies were dotted with little sprinkles of stars. It was perfect conditions for a productive sleep. You were quite at peace.

However, it wasn’t the same for your husband lying next to you.

Remus had broken out into a sweat, his legs shifting uncomfortably around under the sheets as his mind raced with disturbing images. His breathing was heavy and rapid in response to the nightmare he was having, his head moving in distress on his pillow. He had begun to let out scared whimpers and low cries, which brought you from your sleep. It took you a minute to realize that Remus was having a bad dream, and he was what woke you up.

You rested a hand on his shoulder, shaking gently to keep from startling him more.

“Remus, darling, wake up.” Your drowsy voice whispered out.

He suddenly shot up in bed with a sharp gasp, his heart pumping in his ears and throbbing in his head at being awoken so abruptly. His eyes darted around the room frantically, relief falling on his features at the sight of you looking worriedly at him. 

“Oh, thank Merlin…” He croaked out, falling into your frame.

You wasted no time taking him into your hold, his head resting on your chest as you stroked his damp hair. You hushed him, rubbing his back carefully to get him to calm down a little. His breathing was muffled in your shirt as he tried to fight through the panic response, his entire body was shaking violently. You spoke to him sweetly and quietly.

“You’re okay. I’m here. It was just a dream.” You consoled him, pressing a kiss to the top of his head.

You felt terrible for him. You knew how much he needed sleep, and you always hated when he didn’t get it. He didn’t say anything, but he did something that almost sent you into tears yourself.

He started to cry.

Remus never cried. You would definitely consider him a sensitive guy, and he was much more in touch with his emotions than most males that you knew. Despite this, you had only seen Remus cry two other times in the many years you had been together. The first was when he proposed to you, and the second was when you got married. And even then, those had been happy tears. So this was something seriously upsetting to him.

These were not tears of joy kind of sobs. These were gut wrenching, heartbreaking, truly broken down kind of cries. 

“Oh, Remus…” You called out, bringing his head from your chest so he’d look at you; “What is it?”

He was still quivering, his eyes endlessly pooling with tears and you watched helplessly as they fell down his cheeks. 

“Kiss me.” He said more as a beg than anything else.

You almost chuckled, thinking he was trying to be funny to diffuse the situation, but there wasn’t a hint of entertainment on his face.

“What, love?” You asked.

His clammy hands came to your face, looking into your eyes.

“Kiss me, please. I need to know that you’re actually here.” He pleaded.

You kissed him without hesitation, your heart aching at how bad this had rattled him. He kissed you so desperately that you would’ve thought that he hadn’t seen you in years. His lips were quivering on yours, his crying only ceasing for a few seconds. He pulled away, a little less frantic, but still shaken up. He sighed deeply.

“It was so real. I was…I was sure that you…” He trailed off, another harsh bawl erupting from his soul.

You pushed his hair back from his forehead so you could see his full face, persuading him to talk it out.

“Let’s talk about it, yeah?” You suggested.

He nodded with another whimper, a fruitless attempt to stop his crying. His voice cracked and quaked as he spoke.

“I’ve had dreams like that before…but this one was so different. I didn’t even know I was dreaming,” He explained; “I was watching you, but I wasn’t really there. It was like I was watching a memory.”

He stopped for a moment, sniffling a few times before continuing with his story. He held your hand, squeezing it when he was fighting a choked up sob.

“And then I showed up, but it was a full moon,” He said, knowing you’d understand what he was implying; “Moony was so angry and he just attacked and I couldn’t do anything. Before I knew it, he had…”

You hushed him again when he fell off into crying once more. He didn’t have to say it. You knew that Moony had killed you in his dream. It was something that Remus had always been afraid of. Scratch that, he was petrified of it. Remus had mentioned to you in passing that he sometimes had bad dreams about Moony hurting people, but you guessed that you had never been the victim until tonight’s nightmare. 

“Remus, I know it frightened you,” You said, wiping tears away from his scarred cheeks; “But I’m here, love. I’m right here in front of you. Moony didn’t hurt me…you didn’t hurt me.” You convinced him.

As relieving as it was to know that nothing had happened and that you were safe, Remus still felt this sense of dread. He knew what Moony could do, and he tried his best not to think about what could happen. 

His shaking had slowed some, and his heart and breathing were going at a more normal pace. You held him again, his arms wrapping around your midsection and his head resting against your chest once more. He listened to your steady heartbeat, another reminder that you were there and totally fine. You hummed softly, rocking him back and forth just slightly. While you never ever wanted Remus to feel upset or hurt, you still cherished these moments where he was vulnerable. The moments where he retreated to you for comfort. 

You took advantage of any moment to show him love and affection. He was such a pure, gentle soul that didn’t deserve the tribulations he had to face. 

“I love you. You’re okay.” You said again, making sure that he knew.

He raised his head, moving to sit upright. He knew there was no way he’d be sleeping for the rest of the night, but he didn’t mind. As long as you were there, he didn’t need it. 

“I love you, my beautiful girl,” He replied, the last of his tears fading away; “Thank you for being there for me…and I’m sorry for waking you.”

You assured him that there was nowhere else on the planet that you’d rather be, telling him that he was more important than sleep. Now that he was well into settling down, he noted how disheveled you looked from being abruptly brought from your sleep. He knew you’d want to go back to bed soon, which was fine.

“Kiss me again?” He requested with a slight smirk.

You gave him a smile, knowing that this time he was just being cheeky. You obliged though, kissing him and keeping him close until he was fully feeling like himself again. He didn’t get much sleep for the rest of the night, but you were there with him. 

And that was all he needed.


End file.
